Animal euthanasia

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Animal euthanasia (euthanasia from Greek: εὐθανασία; "good death") is the act of killing an animal humanely, most commonly with injectable drugs. Reasons for euthanasia include incurable (and especially painful) conditions or diseases,^[1] lack of resources to continue supporting the animal, or laboratory test procedures. Euthanasia methods are designed to cause minimal pain and distress. Euthanasia is distinct from animal slaughter and pest control.

In domesticated animals, the process of animal euthanasia can be substituted with synonyms, such as "put down" or "put to sleep" to make the wording less harsh.^[2]